A Massachusetts Institute of Technology graduate died while trying to climb his alma mater's iconic 150ft-high dome.

Nicholas Paggi, 24, died after he climbed the roof near the dome and slipping on Tuesday night, CBS News reports.

The 2015 graduate of the top global university was climbing the dome as a fun sort of prank, his mother told CBS.

Nicholas Paggi, 24, died after he slipped and fell while trying to climb the 'Great Dome' at the Massachusetts of Technology, his alma mater. He is pictured on the Charles River in Boston and the dome can be seen in the background

Paggi graduated from MIT in 2015 with degrees in computer science and engineering, and physics. He had been working as a software engineer at the time of his death

He was working as a software engineer and had graduated with degrees in computer science and engineering, and physics, the school's newspaper The Tech reports.

Doctor Rich Fletcher told CBS: 'He was one of the greatest computer programmers I've worked with.'

He added: 'He was a great mentor to all students. It's such a loss to all of us.'